Did Jimi Hendrix really call Rory Gallagher the greatest guitarist of all time?
Since the earliest days of rock ‘n’ roll, the argument over the greatest guitarist of all time has waged on. Lending itself to countless different genres, styles and time periods, it is difficult to say for sure who the definitive greatest player is, but there are some names that tend to rise above the rest. One such name is Jimi Hendrix, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest – if not the greatest – musicians to ever master the six-string. However, the ever-modest Hendrix was quick to downplay this praise, always highlighting the talents of his contemporaries.
Of course, Hendrix rose to prominence during the psychedelic rock boom of the late 1960s, a period which was particularly awash with groundbreaking guitarists. Far from being competitive, however, Hendrix was always keen to espouse the brilliance of fellow guitarists like Eric Clapton, George Harrison, and Hubert Sumlin always remained a favourite. As a member of Howlin’ Wolf’s group, Sumlin certainly earned his spot as one of Hendrix’s favourite guitarists, though that appreciation was not particularly reciprocated.
Rory Gallagher was another figure who defined the guitar stylings of the era, both through his work with blues rockers Taste and his celebrated solo discography. Generally, if you mention Gallagher and Hendrix in the same sentence, somebody present will bring up the famous quote in which Hendrix was asked, “How does it feel to be the greatest guitarist in the world?” only to reply, “Ask Rory Gallagher”. Except Hendrix never actually said that.
At least, there is no evidence to suggest that Hendrix ever cited Gallagher as the greatest guitarist in the world. Nevertheless, the alleged quote has been floating around on internet forums and fan sites for decades. Indeed, if you look around a bit, there are countless variations of the quote, interchanging Hendrix for Clapton and Gallagher for Prince, Phil Keaggy, and pretty much any other great guitarist you can think of.
The more you think about it, the less likely the mythical quote seems to be. For starters, Gallagher arrived on the radars of most music fans during the early 1970s, towards the back end of Taste’s discography and the beginning of his solo work. This raises the first concern over the quote, given that Hendrix famously died in September of 1970 – and it is not clear whether they get new releases in rock and roll heaven.
So, no, Jimi Hendrix never cited Rory Gallagher as the greatest guitarist of all time, but the Irish blues rocker certainly has a claim to that accolade. He might not receive the same attention or fame as the likes of Hendrix, Eric Clapton or Jimmy Page, but Gallagher could certainly take them all on in an axe-battle. Throughout his professional career, the guitarist brought countless new layers of innovation and creativity to the field of blues rock, completely reinventing the genre in the process.
There is no evidence that Hendrix ever mentioned Gallagher in interviews, but the likes of Brian May, Eric Clapton, and Alex Lifeson have all cited the Irish guitar master as a major influence on their own work. The vast likelihood is that Hendrix would have heaped praise onto Gallagher had he lived long enough to see the Taste guitarist enter his prime, but I suppose we will never know for sure.
